daddy
Americannoun
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Informal. a diminutive of dad.
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Slang. sugar daddy.
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Slang. an affectionate or familiar term of address to a boyfriend or male romantic partner, especially if he is older.
verb (used with object)
idioms
noun
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an informal word for father
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slang the supreme or finest example
the daddy of them all
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slang the dominant male in a group; boss; top man
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of daddy
Explanation
Daddy is an affectionate nickname for your father. For many babies, daddy is one of the earliest words they learn to speak. Many young children call their fathers daddy, and the word is believed to come from baby talk, or the initial sounds — da da — that a baby or toddler tends to make when she's first learning to speak. It's less common for a grown person to call her dad daddy, although some people use the childish nickname throughout their lives.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Copeland: My daddy raised me to be a jazz musician, which is pretty much why I regard jazz as being music around the family heart, a safe place.
From Los Angeles Times • May 4, 2026
There was a long-running parlor game during his father’s first term about which of the children would run for president after daddy was done.
From Salon • May 3, 2026
In the end, Lachlan received the long-sought kiss from daddy while James discovered, through an assortment of leaks, how much his mother and father couldn’t stomach him.
From Salon • Mar. 14, 2026
"She is understandably traumatised by this and is now suffering with separation anxiety with me because she does not want me to go and not come back 'like daddy did'."
From BBC • Feb. 20, 2026
According to Nan, she was a born loner but always blessed with a plus-one, first my daddy and now me.
From "Hope Springs" by Jaime Berry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
